Why Franchising? Why Now?
By Brian March 31, 2020
There is an immense, overgeneralized stigma that’s attached to the idea of a franchise business. Something akin to a brand selling out, or losing its soul. The very word, franchise, seems sterile and impersonal.
I know these truths because, for the longest time, that’s what I felt about franchising. When people would ask if Summit would consider franchising, I hopped on my high horse and shooed them away.
But then, like with most things in life, once I pushed my ego aside and started to do my research, started to learn and listen, started to ask “Why not,” instead of “never,” I got over myself and my immense, overgeneralized stigmas and thought about what I want for the future of Summit Coffee.
The past few years have shown me how this brand evolves, how it takes on different shapes and sizes and somehow appears not only relevant, but enjoyed, at every stop. People like the name, Summit Coffee, and also the mountain icon, and our colors, and all of our branding. And folks who’ve been to our cafés LOVE them, love the people and the roles that these storefronts play in our communities. People like our coffee, and our commitment to giving back, and our affinity for live music and the arts.
It’s no secret that I want to grow Summit. At first, it was beyond one store. Then after we had two cafés in Davidson, it was beyond coffee shops … and then came the roastery. And then it was, outside of Lake Norman, and our beautiful retail space in Asheville was born. Expansion is happening, it’s inevitable, it’s exciting.
Why growth? Because it allows us to challenge ourselves, to see what we’re made of. It’s like asking a band why they ever want to play somewhere beyond the local dive bar. Why wouldn’t any band want to make it to Charlotte’s Filmore Theater, or heck, to a stadium show? Writers don’t write books and hope that only their friends and family read them. So why would we make coffee, build a coffee brand, and hope that only people in Davidson and Asheville could experience it?
Growth also allows us to grow our team. In the past year, we were able to increase salaries and wages, AND offer health benefits to our entire team. We can afford that (well, we hope we can) because of growth.
So, why franchising? The past few weeks in Davidson, as we’ve pivoted on a dime and rewritten our monthly objectives time and time again, have shown me how imperative it is to have ownership that’s deeply rooted in local community. When Summit needed people to rally, it was me, my family, it was Tim and his family, and Andrew and Dora and Jamie — the faces you know and love — asking for your support.
Local ownership makes an incredible difference. If I want there to be dozens of Summits, or hundreds — and I do — I also recognize that I cannot be in dozens or hundreds of communities. It’s hard enough for me to feel properly engaged in both Davidson and Asheville.
So the feeling I’ve had for the last few weeks, fighting to save Summit and calling on the community to fight alongside us? I want others to have that feeling, the opportunity for that feeling. I want to support a James or a Janice in Huntersville root into their community, make Summit mean something to a new group of people. I want Kathy or Keith in Boston to be able to be a leader during the next global pandemic, by harnessing their local community, and the power of the Summit brand.
I could not have rallied the Huntersville or Boston communities during this pandemic. Somebody could have, just not me. And I want to empower those somebodies.
It’s small businesses like Summit that build communities, and preserve jobs. That make people feel something, that provide meaning to a cup of coffee. More than 50% of franchises are local brands — companies like Summit, who want to grow and challenge themselves. The franchise stigmas — McDonald’s and Chick-fil-A — are in the minority, not the majority.
These past few weeks showed me that the Summits of the world are how we’re going to rally from this recession. If I open a few dozen Summits, it’s no longer a locally owned brand. I don’t live in the markets where we want to open new cafés — I only have one house!
But I do know the Summit brand, and have the vision for how it will grow. I’ve seen the roots of it, and can’t wait to see those roots flourish. I need help to bring that vision to life. We need entrepreneurs who want to take a cool brand and make it work in their local communities. Who want to serve coffee on Saturdays, and beers on Fridays, and walk to the café in the mornings with their families and friends.
I am the owner of Summit, but I don’t need to be the only owner of a Summit. The Summit brand is bigger than me, it’s bigger than our family, it’s bigger than Davidson. We’ve seen it flourish in Asheville, seen people obsess over it in Colorado. It’s heartwarming and affirming, and also a call to keep going. And now we’re ready to share those feelings with other people.
If you’re curious what franchising looks like, shoot me an email
link to original journal.